SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – On February 23, 2026, United States District Court Judge Pedro A. Delgado sentenced Juan Carlos Cruz-Hernández to 24 months in prison, three years of supervised release, and restitution of $32,000 for his role in a bribery and wire fraud conspiracy and scheme to defraud the Puerto Rico Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTOP), announced W. Stephen Muldrow, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. Three other defendants were previously charged alongside Cruz-Hernández; two are scheduled to be sentenced in March 2026, and one is awaiting trial.
The four defendants were indicted on July 17, 2024, and arrested on July 18, 2024. Juan Carlos Cruz-Hernández plead guilty on May 6, 2025, to conspiracy to commit bribery concerning a program receiving federal funds, federal program bribery, conspiracy to commit wire fraud deprivation of honest services of a public official, and wire fraud deprivation of honest services.
Defendant Juan Carlos Cruz-Hernández negotiated and made bribe payments to multiple public DTOP employees working in the regional driver service centers (CESCO) located in Caguas and Carolina, Puerto Rico. During the bribery scheme, approximately $66,000 was paid by Juan Carlos Cruz-Hernández to multiple DTOP employees. These bribe payments were made in exchange for certain official acts, including accessing DTOP-CESCO information, obtaining duplicate documentation, and eliminating driver and vehicle fines. The DTOP employees were responsible for accessing driver and vehicle information, and among other things, possessed the ability to remove driver and vehicle fines.
U.S. Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow of the District of Puerto Rico and Yariel Ramos, Acting Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations made the announcement.
Homeland Security Investigations was in charge of the investigation of the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Marie Christine Amy from the Financial Fraud & Public Corruption Section prosecuted the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
